A great shortcut!

If I don't have time to whip up a batch of royal icing, or I just don't want to take the time to make the icing and color it, I love using this:

You knead the package for one minute then snip off the top.  Outline your cookie first, then fill it in most of the way.  (I just kind of "scribble" or fill it in randomly.)  Do about five of these at a time to give each one a little time to fill in on it's own, then go back and use a toothpick to push the icing into the spots that didn't get filled in.  Easy-peasy and fast.  You can then put on sprinkles while it's still wet, if you'd like.  Or wait till it's dry to add more details.  OR just leave it how it is.  And the colors are so bright!  Here are some valentine cookies I did with this icing earlier today.  (I used a chocolate roll-out cookie recipe.)

{Ignore the little holes in some of the cookies.  A little "helper" used the tip of the frosting to poke some holes in the cookies.  I think she thought she was helping.  The frosting covered it up, at least!!}

{The red and white are the Betty Crocker brand.  Betty Crocker doesn't make pink, so this pink is a Wilton brand premade icing that you can buy.  I actually prefer the Betty Crocker one!}

Homemade Hostess Cupcakes

Recipe source: bakeat350.blogspot.com

Here at our house, we started celebrating half-birthdays.  Nothing big and fancy, just small and simple. Just enough to make the half-birthdayee feel special.  For half-birthdays we have cupcakes instead of a cake.  The half-birthday boy or girl gets a couple small gifts.  Today we had Keyan's celebration.  I spent a total of $2.50 on his little presents, but it was enough to put a ginormous smile on his face.  He loved being the center of attention and getting to open something, even if it was small.


For his cupcakes I tried out this recipe from Bake at 350.  They turned out great, and we all loved them.

For the Cupcakes
1 & 1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1 & 1/4 cups granulated sugar
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

For the Filling
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla exrtact
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 cup marshmallow creme

For the Ganache
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips.)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the Icing (This makes a ton.  I ended up using less than half.)

1 stick unsalted butter
1 & 1/2 - 2 tablespoons milk 
2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350. Place paper liners in muffin tin for about 20 cupcakes.

Prepare the cupcakes: Bring the sugar and 1 cup water to a boil in a saucepan, stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Pour into a large bowl; add the chocolate and butter and let sit, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture has cooled slightly. Stir in the vanilla.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a bowl.

Using a mixer, beat the eggs into the chocolate, then mix in the dry ingredients.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans (about 1/4 cup batter per cupcake) and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool in the pans for about 25 minutes, then transfer cupcakes to a rack to cool completely.

(They will sink in the middle...they'll puff up when filled later)

For the filling: Using a mixer, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar. Add the vanilla and 1 tablespoon heavy cream; beat until smooth. Beat in the remaining 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar and 2 tablespoons heavy cream in batches, alternating after each addition. Beat in the marshmallow creme; set aside or refrigerate.

For the ganache: Place the chocolate in a stainless-steel bowl. Heat the cream and 1 tablespoon butter until just boiling, then pour over the chocolate; let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Add 2 teaspoons vanilla; let stand until cool but still glossy and liquid.

Spoon the filling into a pastry bag with a medium star tip. Insert the tip into the center of each cupcake top; fill until the cupcake is heavier (do not overfill). (It's OK if some of the filling peeks out, it will be covered by the ganache.)

Spoon a little ganache on each cupcake and lightly spread with an offset spatula or a knife. Chill for at least 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the icing: Using a mixer, beat the remaining 1 stick butter, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, the milk and confectioners’ sugar until smooth, adding more milk if needed. Spoon into a pastry bag with a small tip (I used a #2 plain tip);pipe onto the cupcakes to decorate.

Store in the refrigerator.

The Ultimate Caramel Apples

Recipe source: adapted from jamiecooksitup.blogspot.com

I last made these apples a couple years ago, and little Russell requested them for our Family Home Evening treat this week, so here they are!  (Oh, don't worry.  Our FHE treats are typically nothing this fancy...) These are pretty easy to do, and kiddos can help.  Trey was my buddy with this project. (Keyan helped a little, too.)  It's fun to choose what candies and cookies to use.

So sorry the pictures are awful.  We don't have a great camera, and my cell phone does the best job, sadly enough.

10 small apples

10 craft sticks

2  14 oz bags wrapped caramel candies

4 T water

1 t vanilla

2  12 oz bags milk, semi-sweet, or white chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet and white.)

2 t shortening

Crushed oreos, m&ms, or other candies and cookies (We did christmas Oreos, plain M&Ms, pretzel M&Ms, and Reese's. The Reese's and Pretzel M&Ms were my favorite ones.)

1. Wash your apples, and wash them well. Rub your fingers roughly all over the tops to get any of the waxy coating off.

2. Push your sticks into the center of your apples and put them in the freezer for 40 minutes. 

3. Unwrap your caramels. (Or have your kids unwrap them for you.  They love that they are helping and don't mind the grunt work!) :-) Put them in a medium sized sauce pan with the water and vanilla. Turn the heat to medium and let the caramels melt. Stir them often. You don't want them burning to the bottom of your pan.

4. Dip each apple into the caramel. It will begin to set up pretty quickly. Hold the apple over the caramel to let excess drip off.  Then turn it sideways and rotate it a few times as the caramel starts to harden.  Finally, turn them upside down for just a bit so the bottom part can start to set. Just 20 seconds or so will do fine. Place the apple on a piece of tin foil (not wax paper) that has been sprayed with cooking spray. 

5. Place the caramel apples in the refrigerator to continue setting up, while you work on melting the chocolate.

6. Put each bag of chocolate in a glass measuring cup or bowl. Melt the chips in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time stirring after each cooking interval. Add 1 t shortening to each of your chocolate mixtures and stir to incorporate.

7.  Grab your apples out of the fridge. Take each apple and mold the bottom of it with your hand to get rid of the flat bottom. Dip the apples into the chocolate. Hold the apple above the chocolate container to allow excess chocolate to drip off.  I liked to hold it over the bowl and do kind of a spinning motion to get excess chocolate off.

8. Roll the chocolate covered apple in the crushed candy or cookie of your choice.  The way I do it is more of a pressing than a rolling motion. Since the chocolate is still pretty runny, it seems to work better.  Press first onto the bottom, then press a side, turn and press, etc.  I found I had to rotate it several times around to get the whole thing covered.

9. Set the dipped apple back on the sprayed tin foil to set up.

10. Place them back in the fridge to finish setting up. It should only take about 20 minutes for the chocolate to be totally set up. 

11. To cut for serving, place an apple on your cutting board.  Slice the apple in half, putting your knife right next to the stick.  Once you cut it, the stick should come free.  Put the apple flat side down on the board, and cut in half again.  Place the quarter apple on the board on one of the flat sides and slice off the core diagonally.  Cut this piece in half, and you will have two slices (two eighths) of the apple.  Enjoy!!

Pumpkin cupcakes w/ cinnamon cream cheese frosting

Recipe source: browneyedbaker.com

These cupcakes are so delicious.  Every time I make them someone asks for the recipe.  They are so fun because they are perfect for the season and make your house smell delicious while they are baking.

I did a few things differently than the recipe states.  First, I halved the cupcake part.  I was still able to get 23 cupcakes out of half of the recipe.  Second, I only used 8 ounces of cream cheese in the frosting and added 1 1/2 tsp of cinnamon to the frosting.  And third, I skipped the sifting.  

For the Cupcakes:
4 cups cake flour (not self-rising), sifted
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2½ cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1½ cups canned pumpkin (not pie filling)

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature (I used 8 ounces.)
1 pound (4 cups) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

To Make the Cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.

2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and brown sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and beating until just combined. Add pumpkin; beat until just combined.

3. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be refrigerated up to 3 days in airtight containers.

4. To finish, use an offset spatula or a pastry bag fitted with a decorated tip to top the cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

To Make the Frosting:

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add sugar, ½ cup at a time, and then vanilla, and mix until smooth and combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

If not using immediately, frosting can be refrigerated up to 3 days in an airtight container; before using, bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth again.

Banana Walnut Toffee Cinnamon Pancakes

That title is a mouthful, but I assure you these pancakes are so delicious.  They are more like eating a dessert disguised as a pancake.  I personally like strawberry yogurt on top of mine, but some others in my fam stayed traditional with syrup.  So yummy!!

1 1/4 cups pancake mix (I used Krusteaz brand.)
3/4 cup to 1 cup water (Depending on your consistency preference.  I used 3/4 cup plus a couple tbsp.)
2 bananas, 1 mashed and 1 chopped
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup chocolate toffee pieces (from the baking aisle)
Cinnamon (I didn't measure.  Maybe 1-2 tsp)

Mix water and pancake mix until the mixture is the consistency you would like.  Add in bananas, walnuts, toffee, and cinnamon.  Cook as usual.  I made ours on the small-medium side and got probably 12-13 out of this mix. (Actually, I doubled this and got 26 or so pancakes.  There were no leftovers.  The kids and Russell all loved these.)

Chocolate cobbler

Recipe source: thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen

I made this yummy dessert for Russell's Father's day dinner.  It was gooey, warm, chocolatey, and so yummy.  We ate it with ice cream, but the next day I had some with some whipped cream on top, and I may have liked that better.  The warm cobbler melted the whipped cream....MMMMM!  You can try both, why not??

•1 cup All-purpose Flour
•2 teaspoons Baking Powder
•¼ teaspoons Salt
•7 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder, Divided
•1-¼ cup Sugar, Divided
•½ cups Milk
•⅓ cups Melted Butter
•1-½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
•½ cups Light Brown Sugar, Packed
•1-½ cup Hot Tap Water



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


First stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, 3 tablespoons of the cocoa, and 3/4 cup of the white sugar. Reserve the remaining cocoa and sugar.

Stir in the milk, melted butter, and vanilla to the flour mixture. Mix until smooth.

Pour the mixture into an ungreased 8-inch baking dish.

In a separate small bowl, mix the remaining white sugar (it should be 1/2 cup), the brown sugar, and remaining 4 tablespoons of cocoa. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the batter.

Pour the hot tap water over all. DO NOT STIR!

Bake for about 40 minutes or until the center is set.

Let stand for a few minutes if you can hold yourself back. Serve with ice cream using the gooey sauce to spoon over all.

Breakfast Pancake Cake

Recipe source: savorysweetlife.com
Photo credit: savorysweetlife.com

Yeah, so this isn't the one I made, but let's just pretend that mine looked as pretty as Alice's from savorysweetlife.com. 

This recipe is a great one to use when you have company or if there is a special occasion.  I made this for part of Russell's Father's day breakfast.  It was fun and really yummy.  When you do the strawberries on top, be sure to do a complete layer of strawberries and then put the whipped cream on top of the strawberries.  I made the mistake of putting whipped topping on top with strawberries around the outside, and it melted off of the warm pancake and fell off the sides.  Ooops!


4– 8″ pancakes

1 cup of whipped cream
1 cup of sliced strawberries
1.5 cups of roasted potatoes
1.5 cups of scrambled eggs
1 lb. of cooked bacon


Lay the first pancake down on a plate or serving platter. Add a layer of roasted potatoes all the way to the edge. Add another pancake and add the scrambled eggs. Add the third pancake and add your bacon. Add the final pancake. At this point if everything is cold, you will want to microwave everything for 3 minutes right before serving. Top off with strawberries and whipped cream and serve immediately. Cut carefully just like a slice of cake.

PW's Cinnamon Rolls

Recipe source:  thepioneerwoman.com/cooking

Here's Pioneer Woman's recipe for cinnamon rolls.  I thought they were delicious.  I have another recipe that I love, too, but I will not deny that these were awesome!  I loved the maple flavored frosting.  I also love cream cheese frosting on cinnamon rolls, so I guess I'll have to alternate. :-)  The only thing I would do differently with these is make them bigger.  I think I rolled out the dough too much and so the rolls themselves were small.  But then I guess you can eat more of them, right? 

I made these rolls for a special breakfast for Russell on Father's day.  Since I didn't want to wake up in the middle of the night to start said breakfast, I discovered the fridge and freezer methods.  This is so nice, because I halved PW's recipe, and it still made a lot.  So now I've got a couple dozen cinnamon rolls in the freezer to have whenever we want without as much work! 

Here's what I learned:  Make the cinnamon rolls all the way up to where you roll the dough into a log and cut them into individual rolls.  Then if you are going to have the rolls the next morning, you can put the rolls into the pan they will be baked in (in PW's case, in the pan with the butter), cover them with saran wrap or a lightweight towel, and leave them in the fridge overnight.  The rolls will slowly rise overnight.  In the morning set them in a warm place for 30-60 minutes, then bake like normal. 

If you don't need to use all of the rolls, or if you'd like to make the rolls way ahead of time, after you cut the dough into individual rolls, lay them in a pan and freeze immediately.  Once they are frozen, stick 'em in a freezer ziploc bag, and keep them in the freezer till you need them.  When you are ready to use the rolls, place them in the pan you will bake them in and sit them on the counter overnight, covered with saran wrap or a lightweight towel.  Then bake them in the morning.  Voila!

Ingredients

1 quart Whole Milk
1 cup Vegetable Oil
1 cup Sugar
2 packages Active Dry Yeast
8 cups (Plus 1 Cup Extra, Separated) All-purpose Flour
1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt
Plenty Of Melted Butter
2 cups Sugar
Generous Sprinkling Of Cinnamon

_____

MAPLE FROSTING:
1 bag Powdered Sugar
2 teaspoons Maple Flavoring
½ cups Milk
¼ cups Melted Butter
¼ cups Brewed Coffee  (I left this out and used more butter or milk to replace it.)
⅛ teaspoons Salt


Preparation Instructions


Mix the milk, vegetable oil and sugar in a pan. “Scald” the mixture (heat until just before the boiling point). Turn off heat and leave to cool 45 minutes to 1 hour. When the mixture is lukewarm to warm, but NOT hot, sprinkle in both packages of Active Dry Yeast. Let this sit for a minute. Then add 8 cups of all-purpose flour. Stir mixture together. Cover and let rise for at least an hour.

After rising for at least an hour, add 1 more cup of flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir mixture together. (At this point, you could cover the dough and put it in the fridge until you need it – overnight or even a day or two, if necessary. Just keep your eye on it and if it starts to overflow out of the pan, just punch it down).

When ready to prepare rolls: Sprinkle rolling surface generously with flour. Take half the dough and form a rough rectangle. Then roll the dough thin, maintaining a general rectangular shape. Drizzle 1/2 to 1 cup melted butter over the dough. Now sprinkle 1 cup of sugar over the butter followed by a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.

Now, starting at the opposite end, begin rolling the dough in a neat line toward you. Keep the roll relatively tight as you go. Next, pinch the seam of the roll to seal it.

Spread 1 tablespoon of melted butter in a seven inch round foil cake or pie pan. Then begin cutting the rolls approximately ¾ to 1 inch thick and laying them in the buttered pans.

Repeat this process with the other half of the dough. Let the rolls rise for 20 to 30 minutes, then bake at 400 degrees (see note below) until light golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes.

For the frosting, mix together all ingredients listed and stir well until smooth. It should be thick but pourable. Taste and adjust as needed. Generously drizzle over the warm rolls. Go crazy and don’t skimp on the frosting.

Cheddar Biscuits

Recipe source:  cassiecraves.blogspot.com

These are supposedly a knock-off recipe for Red Lobster's cheddar bay biscuits.  I don't know how close they are because I've never had Red Lobster's biscuits or even been to Red Lobster, for that matter.  But I can say that they were super simple to make and really yummy!

2 cups Bisquick
1 teaspoon parsley flakes
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese

1/2 cup butter, melted (I used spray butter.)
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (I used Lawry's garlic salt.)


1. Heat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Mix Bisquick, parsley, onion powder, pepper, milk and cheese until a soft dough forms.

3. Drop by spoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. (I got 10 biscuits out of my dough.) Bake 6-8 minutes or until golden brown.

4. Mix butter or margarine and garlic powder. Brush mixture over warm biscuits before removing from cookie sheet.  (I used spray butter and Lawry's garlic salt here.)

Giant Cookie

Recipe source: melskitchencafe.com

This is such a fun thing to make to take to a neighbor or for a special occasion.  I was REALLY impressed with how this cookie turned out the perfect texture.  It was so yummy.  I made this as a surprise for Russell when he came after taking his BIG test last month. 

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, cream together the sugars and butter. Add the egg and vanilla and mix. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Line a large (11X17-inch) baking pan with foil and press the cookie into a circle. I press my cookie into a 9-inch circle, about 1/4 to 3/8-inch thick. When it bakes, it spreads to about 11 inches, which fits perfectly onto a 12-inch round cardboard circle you can find at most craft stores.

If desired, top the cookie with M&M’s or any other garnishes. Bake for 13-16 minutes until the cookie is lightly golden brown. Let the cookie cool completely on the baking pan – this helps the cookie stabilize and set so it can be easily lifted off the pan. Once cool, gently use the foil to lift the cookie off the pan.

Barbecue Chicken Salad

Recipe source: sisterscafe.blogspot.com


I was surprised how delicious this salad was.  This is pretty fast to throw together.  We made and ate this after the kiddos went to bed while we watched a movie together.  You can cook up your own chicken, or even easier, you can grab a rotisserie chicken from the store on your way home, pull off all the chicken and mix w/ barbecue sauce.  Fast and easy! 

Oh, yeah, and the recipe gives instructions for making some crispy tortilla strips out of tortillas to put on the salad, but I forgot to do that, so we used lime flavored Tostitos.  Also delicious.  I may try the tortillas next time, or I just might use my favorite:  Fritos!

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 cup BBQ sauce

1/2 head Romaine lettuce, chopped (I just dumped in a bag salad.)
1/2 head Iceberg lettuce, chopped
1 can corn, drained (I left this off.)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
4 Roma tomatoes, diced
2 Haas avocados, diced

shredded cheese, Mexican blend or cheddar
crispy tortilla strips

Stir shredded chicken in with the BBQ sauce until well coated. Of course you can use less or more sauce, it's up to you! Toss together the lettuce, cilantro, corn, beans, and chopped veggies. Top with shredded chicken, cheese and crispy tortilla strips. Drizzle ranch or cilantro lime dressing over salad and enjoy! (We found that the salad didn't need any dressing because of the bbq sauce on the chicken.)


*to make crispy tortilla strips simply slice about 10 corn tortillas in narrow strips and place on cookie sheet. Spray with vegetable oil cooking spray and sprinkle generously with salt. Place under the broiler and let bake until crispy and brown around the edges.

New York Times Ch.Chip Cookies

Recipe source: New York Times

These cookies are THE perfect chocolate chip cookies.  (in my humble opinion...)  I love these.  They are super good.  They do take a little advance preparation because the dough is supposed to sit in the fridge for a few days, but to me it is well worth it.  If I know I'm going to make these, I just make the dough a few days ahead of time, and it's no big deal!

P.S. The recipe says to use 3 1/2 ounce scoops of dough for each cookie.  That makes a REALLY big cookie, which is sometimes really fun.  But I've also found that anywhere from 2 1/2 ounces up also makes a big cookie, and you can get more out of the batch.

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao content (I couldn't find disks, so I just used whatever dark chocolate chunks, chips, whatever that my grocery store had.)
Sea salt

1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.

3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.

4. Scoop 6 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day. Eat warm, with a big napkin.

Pasta Italia

This is a pasta that came from my brother in law Pasquale. He brought it home with him from Italy, and we love it! It is a really easy fun thing to make especially in the summer.

Ingredients:

1 lb spiral pasta (we use wheat but whatever floats your boat)
1 loaf fresh mozzarella (you can find 2 loafs at costco or you can usually find it near the deli in the grocery store)
4 medium roma tomatoes
2 cans black olives
olive oil
salt

Directions:

Boil pasta, while pasta is boiling dice the mozz and tomatoes and put in a large mixing bowl. Add olives (whole), then add pasta once cooked to desired softness and drained (if still hot run cold water over so it won't melt the mozz). Lightly coat with olive oil and then salt to taste (the salt brings out the taste in the mozz and the tomatoes so don't be stingy!)

All of the amounts of these ingredients can be varied, like less olives if you have olive dislikers in your fam or more mozz or whatever I just try to put an even amount of everything in.

I try to make lots so there are leftovers cuz its yummy that way too!

Enjoy!

Feta Sun-Dried Tomato Turkey Burger Sliders

Recipe source: picky-palate.com

I always trust Picky Palate to come through.  She is always posting yummy recipes, and I love this one.  They were so cute, too.  I found mini hamburger buns at my grocery store, so hopefully they are anywhere.  We paired these little sliders with oven roasted corn on the cob.  Tis the season!

I learned a great tip for shaping burgers from savorysweetlife.com (one of my favorite sites!).  Find a jar lid that is slightly larger than your hamburger bun.  Lay a sheet of plastic wrap over it, then press the meat right into the lid.  Pop it out and you have a perfectly shaped burger.  Also, press down and make an indentation in the middle to keep it from getting really thick in the middle.  For these little sliders, the lid to my mayo jar was the perfect size.  A quarter cup of the burger mix was just the right amount. 

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 lb ground turkey
1/2 Cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 Cup sun-dried tomatoes, jarred in olive oil
1/2 Cup fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped
Pinch of Kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper and Lawry’s Garlic Salt with Parsley

Sun-Dried Tomato Mayonnaise
1 Cup mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil, drained
Baby hamburger buns or dinner rolls, split and warmed
2 Cups fresh baby spinach leaves

1. Heat oil into a large skillet over medium heat. Place turkey, feta, sun dried tomato, spinach and seasonings into a mixing bowl. Mix until just combined. Form 1/4 Cup little patties and place onto a cookie sheet. Once all are formed, place batches in hot skillet. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown and cooked through.


2. Place mayonnaise and tomatoes into a bowl; mix to combine. Spread over insides of warm rolls. Layer bottom roll with spinach and the burger. Close with top roll.

Milky Way Cake

Recipe source: Sunday Baker @ comeandpeek.blogspot.com

I made this cake to go along with Russell's birthday dinner.  It was so, SO good.  Beware, though.  This cake is pretty sweet.  I had no problem though, as I could eat a bag of sugar and be fine.  Just kidding, but seriously, this cake was delicious.  We paired it with Heath bar flavored ice cream...  YUM!

Milky Way Cake

1 bag Milky Way mini candy bars (you'll need 2 bags total if you make the icing below)
2-1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 stick butter (real)
1 c. finely chopped walnuts
1/2 t. baking soda
2 c. granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 c. buttermilk
1-1/2 t. pure vanilla extract


Icing
20 Milky Way mini candy bars
1 stick butter
1 c. powdered sugar (may need more)
1-3 T. milk

For the cake:
On low heat, melt the stick of butter with the candy bars (the entire bag). Melt them slowly or the butter will boil and scorch the chocolate. Melt it until all of the nougat from the candy bar is melted and it's smooth and creamy (use a whisk). Set aside for a few minutes to cool a bit.

Mix together the flour, soda, and walnuts; set aside. In a mixer, beat eggs well. Beat in the sugar. Slowly add the flour mixture until well combined. Add the buttermilk and vanilla, mixing well. Fold in the candy bar mixture and pour into a greased/floured bundt pan or 2 round pans. Bake on middle rack at 325 degrees for about an hour, checking with a toothpick for doneness. Cool completely.

For the icing:
Melt the candy bars and butter over low heat. Pour into mixer bowl and slowly beat in the powdered sugar and milk, adding more powdered sugar if you want it thicker, more milk if you want it creamier. Pour the icing over the cooled cake and add any remaining cut-up candy bars over the top.

White Chicken Enchiladas

These are definitely not a regular on our menu.  Once you glance through the line-up of ingredients, you'll understand why!  But occasionally we splurge. Like for birthdays!  Russell requested these for his birthday dinner.  We had coconut cilantro rice to go along with these babies (minus the cilantro for the kiddos). 

5 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (I cooked my chicken in the crockpot on high for about 5 hours, then shredded it.  You don't even need to put anything in with the chicken, just season with salt and pepper.)
8 oz cream cheese (I used low-fat)
1 1/2 cups sour cream (Again, used low-fat)
20 ounces green enchilada sauce
Flour tortillas (I was able to get 16 out of this recipe.)
1 1/2 lbs monterey jack cheese, shredded
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (optional)
Chopped cilantro (optional)

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together cream cheese, sour cream, and enchilada sauce until cream cheese is melted and smooth.

Spray 2 9x13 pans lightly with cooking spray.  Fill tortillas with sauce, chicken, cheese, and beans.  Roll and place side by side in pan.  If you have any remaining chicken or beans, sprinkle over top of enchiladas.  Spread remaining sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle with remaining cheese. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, uncovered.  Sprinkle cilantro over top if desired.

Just like Carrabbas Chicken Bryan

Recipe source: thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen

Okay, so I've never had Chicken Bryan at Carrabbas.  This was just the title of recipe given, but I can say that this was dang good.  Make this.  You won't be sorry!

FOR SAUCE

2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Tablespoon Finely Chopped Garlic
1 Tablespoon Finely Chopped Yellow Onion
½ cups Chicken Broth
¼ cups Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice (I did not use fresh.)
10 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Cut Into Small Pieces (if you use salted, be sure to leave the rest of the salt out, or else it will be TOO salty!)
1-½ cup Finely Sliced Sun-dried Tomatoes
¼ cups Chopped Fresh Basil
½ teaspoons Kosher Salt
½ teaspoons White Pepper
_____

FOR CHICKEN:
6 whole Chicken Breasts
1 Tablespoon To 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Black Pepper
8 ounces, weight Goat Cheese, Softened To Room Temperature (I found this over by the deli, where you can get specialty cheeses.)

For the Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce:


Place butter, garlic, and onion in large skillet over medium heat and saute until garlic and onion are tender and transparent.

Add chicken broth and lemon juice. Increase heat to medium-high and simmer to reduce by half.

Reduce heat to low. Add cold butter one piece at a time. Add sun-dried tomatoes, basil, salt, and pepper and stir to blend ingredients. Set aside.

For the chicken:


Heat some olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper, then place on skillet. Cook evenly on both sides until cooked through

Divide goat cheese evenly between chicken breasts, placing some on each breast for the last two minutes of cooking.

To serve, place cooked chicken on serving platter and spoon Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce over chicken.

Peanut Butter and Maple Granola

Recipe source: cookingwithkrista.blogspot.com

I am not a big fan of oatmeal, but I do like things that have oats in them.  I've stumbled across granola, and I really love it.  I eat it my smoothie that I have every day, and now I love having it with yogurt and a banana for breakfast or a snack, too.  Russell and the kids like it with yogurt also, but they like eating it as cereal, as well.  I really like Special K's new granola they just put out.  However, typically granola can be pretty spendy.  I have been interested in making it so I wouldn't have to buy it, but the recipes I've seen either have a ton of ingredients or they have ingredients I don't want to use, like wheat germ or something.  This recipe came up in my google reader, and I immediately saved it to try.  I'm so glad I did. We all LOVE it. 

The recipe says to use regular ol' peanut butter, which would be GREAT, but my grocery store has cinnamon raisin peanut butter.  I thought it would be yummy, and it was!  The same brand also has a white chocolate peanut butter and a dark chocolate peanut butter that you can bet I will be trying soon in this recipe!  Also, the recipe makes quite a bit, so you don't have to make it very often.


6 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking or instant)
2 cups chopped nuts (I used chopped pecans)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, or to taste
Dash salt
1 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup peanut butter


Preheat the oven to 300F. (I ended up having to raise the temp to 350 towards the end, because it was taking too long to cook.)  Put a 9x13 inch roasting pan (you will need one with high sides) over medium-low heat (put the pan over 2 burners if it's convenient). Add the oats and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to change color and become fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the nuts and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Add the cinnamon, salt and maple syrup, 1/2 cup peanut butter and put in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring once or twice so the peanut butter doesn't burn.


Cool on a rack, continuing to stir once in a while until the granola reaches room temperature. Transfer to a sealed container and store in the refrigerator; it will keep indefinitely.

White Velvet Sugar Cookies

Recipe source: melskitchencafe.com

This is my very favorite sugar cookie recipe.  It is so delicious.  Delicious enough to eat without frosting, although so, so good with frosting, too. :-) 

One other thing:  My best friend when baking is parchment paper.  Lay some down on your cookie sheet, and you will always be able to get your cookies off easily!

2 cups butter, softened
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
2 cups sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 1/2 - 4 ¾ cups flour

Cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add sugar, egg yolks and vanilla; mix well. Gradually add flour. The dough will be VERY soft; don’t worry, it gets firmer after chilling. Cover and chill two hours or until firm. Roll out on floured surface to ¼ inch thickness. Cut into shapes; place on greased baking sheets (or use parchment paper). Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until set (but not browned). Cool 5 minutes. Place on wire racks to cool. Frost as desired.

Pizza Rolls

Recipe source: sisterscafe.blogspot.com

Another kid-friendly recipe comin' at ya.  All of these recipes have been kid-friendly, but I've loved them, too!  This one is especially good, because it is so flexible.  You can change it up really easily according to your own tastes.

For the kiddos, I used pepperoni and cheese in the rolls.  For mine I did half with turkey pepperoni, ham, olives, and cheese, and half with low-fat cream cheese, shredded chicken (you could use any chicken), artichokes, and cheese.  They were SO good!  I think it would be yummy to do pineapple and ham or maybe barbecue chicken.  Maybe next time!  Also, the recipe says to use a homemade pizza dough (I used this one.), but you could use a thawed loaf of Rhodes dough, too. I love Rhodes!!

My favorite tip for rolling out dough like this is to lightly grease your countertop and rolling pin with crisco.  This makes the dough stick a little and makes it much easier to roll the dough out without it shrinking back on you.  I just stick my hand in a small ziploc and use that as a "glove" to grease with.  Works great!

You can go here to see pictures of the process and of the finished product.  With this recipe, I think it helps to have a visual. :-)  Someday, I would really love to have a good camera and a good lesson on photography.



pizza dough
mozzarella cheese, shredded or cubed
pepperoni, cut into fourths (I used the mini-pepperonis.)
Whatever toppings you'd like to stuff your rolls with!

Roll pizza dough out into a large rectangle. Using a pizza cutter, cut into 12 pieces. (One time I made this, I got 12 out of the dough.  Another time, I got 16.)  Layer the toppings in the center of each square of dough; about 2-3 Tb total of toppings on each. Now stretch and fold the dough around the toppings, pinching to seal edges. This is the tricky part - the more toppings you use, the harder it gets to tuck them all within the dough! (fyi: pepperoni and cheese or ham and pineapple are much easier, as you can imagine.) Now place seam side down in a lightly greased casserole dish or glass baking dish. Brush with melted butter (I used spray butter) and sprinkle with garlic salt. (I used Lawry's garlic salt with parsley.) Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until rolls are light brown. Serve with your favorite marinara sauce for dipping.